20161122 JUDGEMENT IS INEVITABLE
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Red.
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First reading
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Apocalypse
14:14-19 ©
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In my vision I, John,
saw a white cloud and, sitting on it, one like a son of man with a gold crown
on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. Then another angel came out of the
sanctuary, and shouted aloud to the one sitting on the cloud, ‘Put your sickle
in and reap: harvest time has come and the harvest of the earth is ripe.’ Then
the one sitting on the cloud set his sickle to work on the earth, and the
earth’s harvest was reaped.
Another
angel, who also carried a sharp sickle, came out of the temple in heaven, and
the angel in charge of the fire left the altar and shouted aloud to the one
with the sharp sickle, ‘Put your sickle in and cut all the bunches off the vine
of the earth; all its grapes are ripe.’ So the angel set his sickle to work on
the earth and harvested the whole vintage of the earth and put it into a huge
winepress, the winepress of God’s anger.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm
95(96):10-13 ©
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The Lord comes to
rule the earth.
Proclaim to the
nations: ‘God is king.’
The world
he made firm in its place;
he will
judge the peoples in fairness.
The Lord comes to
rule the earth.
Let the heavens
rejoice and earth be glad,
let the
sea and all within it thunder praise,
let the land and all
it bears rejoice,
all the
trees of the wood shout for joy
at the presence of
the Lord for he comes,
he comes
to rule the earth.
The Lord comes to
rule the earth.
With justice he will
rule the world,
he will
judge the peoples with his truth.
The Lord comes to
rule the earth.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Lk21:28
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Stand erect, hold
your heads high,
because your
liberation is near at hand.
Alleluia!
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Or
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Rv2:10
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Even if you have to
die, says the Lord,
keep faithful, and I
will give you
the crown of life.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 21:5-11 ©
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When some were
talking about the Temple, remarking how it was adorned with fine stonework and
votive offerings, Jesus said, ‘All these things you are staring at now –
the time will come when not a single stone will be left on another: everything
will be destroyed.’ And they put to him this question: ‘Master,’ they said
‘when will this happen, then, and what sign will there be that this is about to
take place?’
‘Take care
not to be deceived,’ he said ‘because many will come using my name and saying,
“I am he” and, “The time is near at hand.” Refuse to join them. And when you
hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened, for this is something that
must happen but the end is not so soon.’ Then he said to them, ‘Nation will
fight against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great
earthquakes and plagues and famines here and there; there will be fearful
sights and great signs from heaven.’
JUDGEMENT
IS INEVITABLE
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: [ Revelation 14:14-19; luke 21:5-11 ]
Today, many people live
their lives as if there is no tomorrow. They have no thought of life
after death. Their concern is only about this life, how to be happy, how
to enjoy and how to make the best of it. Their only thought is to get as
much as they can from this short life because once dead, everything is
over. Few people today think of the final judgment that is to come, even
though many Catholics profess this as a belief whenever they recite the creed
every Sunday that “He will come to judge the living and the dead.” That
is why they tend to live careless, reckless and irresponsible lives.
But today’s scripture
readings remind us that judgment is real and is inevitable. In the first
reading, we read of the angel sent by the Lord to reap the harvest of the
earth. Those who live good, honest and faithful lives will of course look
forward to this day because it is their day of reward and glory. Thy will
find eternal peace and happiness for all that they did. On the
other hand, those who do evil will also be judged accordingly. The other
angel sent by the Lord this time was to “cut all the branches off the vine of
the earth” and “the whole vintage of the earth and put it into a huge
winepress, the winepress of God’s anger.” The winepress refers to the judgment
of those who are evil. They would be punished accordingly.
Like the people during the
time of Jesus, We also ask “when will this happen, then, and what sign will
there be that this is about to take place?” Jesus makes it clear that the
Day of Judgment is not to be mistaken as if it is happening soon because we
hear of natural catastrophes or wars and revolutions. On the contrary,
these are things that are happening all the time. Humanity is being
purified and judged at every point of time in history. Judgement is an
ongoing process. The effects of our deeds, good or bad, will manifest
themselves in our history, at times, sooner and at other times, much
later. But when we hear of the consequences of man’s actions, especially
evil actions, we should not be surprised. Nature will unfold
itself. Those of us who do not live according to the laws of nature will
suffer the backlash. This is what is happening in the world today,
whether it is ecology of creation and nature; or of human ecology when the
natural laws of life are not respected. Indeed, because humanity has
tampered with the natural laws through the use science and technology without
consideration for the moral and ethical consequences, humanity will ultimately
destroy itself. We see this in those countries that are promoting a
one-child policy, and the effects of an affluent society on our marriages and
families as well as our health.
So, it must be clear that
judgement is inevitable. The truth is that at the point of death, our
lives will be totally transparent before God and ourselves. We will call
to mind all that we have done and said. We will come to discover our
hidden intentions and motives for all our actions. Most of all, we will
see the effects of our actions, especially evil deeds on our loved ones, our
children and children’s children; and society at large. Whilst the
body can suffer decadence and corruption, the mind, which is our soul,
continues to be at work in us. When we come to realize the immense pain
and sufferings we have caused to others, we will be brought to shame and
guilt. Purgatory is precisely that state when we cannot forgive ourselves
or those who have hurt us. Hell is when we are so ashamed of ourselves
that we do not even want to meet God who is always forgiving us. Our
pride will hinder us from asking for forgiveness and healing. However, if
we have done good, we will also see the positive effects of our deeds.
Looking at the fruitful results of our actions, we are delighted that we have
made a difference in the lives of our fellowmen and we have served God, Church
and society. We will not have any regrets and we can therefore return to
God.
Thus, we must be watchful
and be realistic that nothing on this earth can last. No matter how much
money we have and how much material things we own, all these will pass and we
cannot take them with us. This is the warning of Jesus when He reminded
the people who were admiring the Temple, “remarking how it was adorned with
fine stonework and votive offerings.” This Temple was not Solomon’s
Temple but the one rebuilt after the exile by Ezra. It was then
desecrated by the Seleucids but later expanded by Herod the Great over a 46
year period. It was considered a great achievement and the pride of the
Jews. But Jesus was upfront. He said, “All these things you are
staring at now – the time will come when not a single stone will be left on
another: everything will be destroyed.” This prophecy was fulfilled in
A.D. 70 when the Roman army demolished it completely. In other words, no
structure on this earth can last regardless how majestic a monument or a
structure it might be.
So instead of worrying
about all the rumours about the end of the world, it is more fruitful for us to
pay attention to ourselves, to the Temple of God that we belong to. We
must live our lives ever ready to face judgement at any point of our
life. Judgement and retribution can happen in this life or in the
next. So it is important that we be prepared at all
times. This means that we should be more concerned about looking
after ourselves, the Temple of God. By our baptism, we are all one in the
Body of Christ in whom His Spirit lives. Therefore to look after the
Temple of God, we must adorn it with good works, good deeds, love, mercy and
forgiveness. Unless, we keep our Temple clean and free from sin and evil,
we will not be ready to meet the Lord or face the consequences of our actions.
Indeed,
the responsorial psalm tells us that God is a just God. “The Lord comes to rule
the earth. Proclaim to the nations: ‘God is king.’ The world he made firm
in its place; he will judge the peoples in fairness. Let the heavens rejoice
and earth be glad, let the sea and all within it thunder praise. Let the
land and all it bears rejoice, all the trees of the wood shout for joy at the
presence of the Lord for he comes, he comes to rule the earth. With justice he
will rule the world; he will judge the peoples with his truth.” This God
of love is also a God of justice. He is ultimately in control of the
world. We must trust Him and be receptive to His rule in our lives.
To allow God to rule our lives is what the establishment of the Kingdom of God
is all about. To have God reign in our hearts means to ensure that
justice, righteousness, truth, love and mercy prevail in our lives.
Accordingly, we must give
an account of our lives to God and to our brothers and sisters. We need
to use what the Lord has given to us for the service of others. At the
end of the day, we will be asked whether we have used the resources that God
has blessed us with solely for ourselves or for the greater good of
others. God has blessed us with many gifts. What we are today is
the result of God’s bountiful love. So we must use them to bless
others. This is where we situate the meaning of service. We
must use our blessings to bring about a better society and a more vibrant
Church. In this way, we can also share in the harvest of God, as we bring
the fruits of our labour to Christ. When we live good lives, when
our conscience is clear because we know we have done all we could for Church,
family and society, we need not be too anxious about the end of the world or
the judgement day. Judgement for us becomes a day of liberation, not
punishment; a day of reward, not condemnation. We can live our days in
peace, knowing that we are prepared to answer before the Lord at any point of
time when He calls us.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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